When we embarked on the first trip, of this latest round of Newby Moss exploration, we battled against a blinding blizzard. On that first rigging trip several of the crew were so frozen by the bitter winds that they had to head back to the cars before even getting underground ? to do so would have been dangerous with so limited feeling left in the extremities. Fast forward a few dozen trips and the land is parched, the sheep desperate for water and it is a hot sweaty slog with minimum kit up the familiar route to the entrance of Long Kin West.
The contrast of winter and summer caving
What a history of exploration this hole has and many of us are quite familiar with the 90m prussic of the entrance pitch, some of us have even done it on ladder but that history is another long story going all the way back to the moon landings. All you really need to know about Long Kin West is that a dye trace from here appeared at Moses Well after only 11 hours and that is 3km away and still 70m below the very bottom of the cave. This is yet another attempt to find the Moses Well master cave.
A gopro image of the end of Pugwash - not as big as it looks
One piece of passage with a fine history is the Late Breakfast Series, so named after real events at an Ingleton caf?. To enter this series one must reach the other side of the entrance shaft about 60m down. Here a ledge leads into a narrow passage with two more pitches that drop into a small streamway. Downstrean is a very tight route which leads back to the top of the final LKW main route pitch. Upstream is tiny but always has the mother of a draught. This was our objective, Pugwash Passage, named incorrectly after a one eyed cartoon character and an early capping accident.
Cut Throat Chamber
First job was to widen the connection back to the main cave to allow drag tray access, next to attack the upstream end with ?renewed vigour?. After many walks up the hill this was accomplished and Cut Throat Chamber entered amid great excitement and pretty roomy it was too. More tough going and two avens, blackened with peat, are discovered. It is still the early stages of the summer and before the drought sets in, so a good drizzling down the avens make an unappealing prospect. Never the less, the second Black Pig Aven is soon climbed topping out at 15m high. Surprise, surprise, everything get bigger and the gloom is instantly lifted. More avens and a gully soar upwards but later climbing shows they soon pinch out. It is the black space across a traverse that grips our interest.
The final pitch
The traverse is soon conquered with another pitch down and aven above in what imaginatively became known as Black Pig 4. The aven tops out at 25m but is the source of a collection of unknown animal bones. At the same height as our traverse, on the other side, is the obvious way on. Here some widening is needed to get access to a further pitch down. The character has changed, dry, clean light rock leads us down. To our own minds we are already heading for the Moses Well master cave, after all, the way on is practically wide open. Over time we reveal another four pitches heading down, small, but onward echoes are plenty enough to keep us going. Eventually, the way on gets too small, there is little draught and stacking space is all used up. It is time to consign our latest explorations to another chapter in the history of Long Kin West.
The full tale, written by poet laureate of caving himself, Dr Frank Pearson, with all the history and a whole lot more will appear in the next issue of Descent.
Anyone wishing explore this offering can make use of this rigging information but of course do so at their own risk. The tyrolean and rope to get across to the Late Breakfast series ledge is in situ. The two LBS pitches remain rigged as we found them and used them. Alternatively you can come in at the bottom. The Pitch up Black Pig two has been left rigged. It goes right to the top although you break off at the obvious traverse point. A 6m pitch follows. The pitch up on the far side can be free climbed and there are anchors for a rope. The enlarged rift pops out directly onto the next pitch followed by another then another and another. 50m should be plenty for the lot including the small stretches in between. All bolts are exploration standard HKD drop ins.
Credit to all involved, especially Frank for photos and Si&Di for survey. it was great fun.
The contrast of winter and summer caving
What a history of exploration this hole has and many of us are quite familiar with the 90m prussic of the entrance pitch, some of us have even done it on ladder but that history is another long story going all the way back to the moon landings. All you really need to know about Long Kin West is that a dye trace from here appeared at Moses Well after only 11 hours and that is 3km away and still 70m below the very bottom of the cave. This is yet another attempt to find the Moses Well master cave.
A gopro image of the end of Pugwash - not as big as it looks
One piece of passage with a fine history is the Late Breakfast Series, so named after real events at an Ingleton caf?. To enter this series one must reach the other side of the entrance shaft about 60m down. Here a ledge leads into a narrow passage with two more pitches that drop into a small streamway. Downstrean is a very tight route which leads back to the top of the final LKW main route pitch. Upstream is tiny but always has the mother of a draught. This was our objective, Pugwash Passage, named incorrectly after a one eyed cartoon character and an early capping accident.
Cut Throat Chamber
First job was to widen the connection back to the main cave to allow drag tray access, next to attack the upstream end with ?renewed vigour?. After many walks up the hill this was accomplished and Cut Throat Chamber entered amid great excitement and pretty roomy it was too. More tough going and two avens, blackened with peat, are discovered. It is still the early stages of the summer and before the drought sets in, so a good drizzling down the avens make an unappealing prospect. Never the less, the second Black Pig Aven is soon climbed topping out at 15m high. Surprise, surprise, everything get bigger and the gloom is instantly lifted. More avens and a gully soar upwards but later climbing shows they soon pinch out. It is the black space across a traverse that grips our interest.
The final pitch
The traverse is soon conquered with another pitch down and aven above in what imaginatively became known as Black Pig 4. The aven tops out at 25m but is the source of a collection of unknown animal bones. At the same height as our traverse, on the other side, is the obvious way on. Here some widening is needed to get access to a further pitch down. The character has changed, dry, clean light rock leads us down. To our own minds we are already heading for the Moses Well master cave, after all, the way on is practically wide open. Over time we reveal another four pitches heading down, small, but onward echoes are plenty enough to keep us going. Eventually, the way on gets too small, there is little draught and stacking space is all used up. It is time to consign our latest explorations to another chapter in the history of Long Kin West.
The full tale, written by poet laureate of caving himself, Dr Frank Pearson, with all the history and a whole lot more will appear in the next issue of Descent.
Anyone wishing explore this offering can make use of this rigging information but of course do so at their own risk. The tyrolean and rope to get across to the Late Breakfast series ledge is in situ. The two LBS pitches remain rigged as we found them and used them. Alternatively you can come in at the bottom. The Pitch up Black Pig two has been left rigged. It goes right to the top although you break off at the obvious traverse point. A 6m pitch follows. The pitch up on the far side can be free climbed and there are anchors for a rope. The enlarged rift pops out directly onto the next pitch followed by another then another and another. 50m should be plenty for the lot including the small stretches in between. All bolts are exploration standard HKD drop ins.
Credit to all involved, especially Frank for photos and Si&Di for survey. it was great fun.
